NBA trade deadline ends: Cavs blow up their roster in final push to keep LeBron

The next time you watch the Cleveland Cavaliers, you might be wondering who the hell is lined up in the wine and gold - except of course, for No.23.

The NBA trade deadline slammed shut overnight, and by far the most active franchise was the 2016 champs, the Cleveland Cavaliers. The Cavs have tried to rebuild their stuttering squad in the hope of keeping LeBron James - who becomes a free agent in summer - for the long term.

Neds have kept Golden State as the raging favourites to win the NBA title at $1.50, with the Cavs and the Houston Rockets in second at $7.50. The Warriors are at short odds to win the Western Conference ($1.33) with the Rockets at $5.50 and the Spurs third at $9.

Neds are still updating their odds in light of the significant shake up the Cavs have brought on in the East.
Aussie Ben Simmons is still a hot favourite to win the Rookie of the year award at $1.22, with Donovan Mitchell ($4.50) and Jayson Tatum ($21) longer shots.

The trade however involved multiple teams and was pretty dang hard to keep track of - who’d wanna be a general manager? - so here’s who went where.

For the Cavs, they’ve traded plenty of stars of the past along with a couple of players who were expected to carry them to success in the present.

Out too go 2010-11 MVP Derrick Rose and 2006 finals MVP Dwyane Wade, with Rose expected to be waived by the Jazz and Wade returning to Miami, where he won three championships.

In return the Cavs have picked up Lakers Jordan Clarkson and Larry Nance Jr, along with George Hill from the Kings and Rodney Hood from Utah.

To further complicate the matter, big man Kendrick Perkins has announced on Twitter that he’d been signed by the Cavs - despite the fact he already plays with the Canton Charge, the Cavs’ feeder club.

FiveThirtyEight - one of the more reliable trackers of potential champs and chumps in the NBA - have suggested the move improves Cleveland’s chances significantly, although probably not enough to beat the Golden State Warriors and possibly not enough to keep LeBron.

Whether Cleveland are a better chance of lifting the Larry O’Brien Championship Trophy at the end of the season is anyone’s guess, although something needed to be done to improve the team’s chemistry.

The side had defended like witches hats throughout the season, often relying on superhuman feats of strength from LeBron James to get them home.

This content brought to you by Neds, odds correct at time of publication.